1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an apparatus and method for monitoring a pump.
2. Description of the Related Art
Centrifugal pumps are widely used in different technical areas. They are used, for example, in oil production, city water supply systems or waste water removal. Such pumps are often used in heavy conditions and/or in a 24-hour regime. Such pumps are regularly expensive and voluminous components, especially when they form part of the infrastructure of a city or a region. A failure of such a pump is usually an important and cost-intensive incident. The failure of a pump may occur suddenly or slowly with degradation of pump characteristics by the time.
In water supply systems, pumps are usually grouped inside pump stations. Pump failure may lead to damage of equipment, serious technical hazards, and interruption in supply or shortage of overall system performance. Preventive detection of pump failures is a challenging task and requires an application of modern methods.